Photos

West Bay Lagoon, also called the Qutaifiya Lagoon, is a private beach-front residential upscale compound in the Qatari capital Doha. Its uniqueness lies in the fact that non-Qataris are allowed full ownership of land within the compound. Land ownership in Qatar is restricted, with ownership mostly limited to nationals.

The Lagoon is in the West Bay district of Doha - known formally as the New District of Doha. The West Bay district covers a large amount of real estate (several square kilometres in total) and was master planned by William L. Perreira & Associates of Los Angeles in the late 1970s.

Off to a slow start, the pace of development has picked up during the last half dozen years. A confluence of several developments caused this, not the least of which was the construction of West Bay Lagoon, an up-market residential development consisting of several hundred building lots sited around an artificial lagoon extending more than 2-kilometer inland from the natural shoreline. Land excavated to create the lagoon was dumped offshore to create several fingers of artificial land on which will be built luxury hotels, a commercial centre, and various recreational facilities and private clubs. The West Bay Lagoon marks the northern limit of the West Bay area and is also now evolving as the premier beachfront hotel district extending northward from the Doha Sheraton. Large waterfront hotels recently opened here include the Ritz Carlton and the InterContinental, with more on the way.

The West Bay Lagoon Plaza, claiming to be the world's largest "zig-zag" towers, are being built adjacent to the Lagoon. Lusail City is being constructed just north of the Lagoon.